Fortress
by E-chan DOLL
Summary: During a particularly violent storm one night, Sora finds himself worrying about a friend of his who he hasn't seen much of lately...


**Fortress**

The palms trees near bent in half from the powerful winds blowing over the island that night. The sky was lightened with the clouds which absorbed the soft glow of the covered moon. Waves crashed into the shore repeatedly and lightning flickered in the distance, somewhere over the stretch of ocean towards the mainland. In the storm, everyone on the islands had locked their doors, boarded their windows and hunkered down to wait it out. All except one. In the night, the boy had bolted from his house, his mind not for his own safety, but someone else's. He lived alone on the other side of the island, near to the beach. The tanned, brown-haired boy raced in that direction while wind and rain pummelled him.

Inside his simple house, Riku was lying alone in the warm darkness of his bedroom, listening to the enraged howls and crashes outside. His window had been boarded up, as had all of the windows and doors in his house and he sat, cross-legged in his hammock bed, riding it out as best he could. Storms had always fascinated him and he'd never seen one like this. Of course, he knew it was dangerous to try and look at it, and he was disappointed for that. Instead, he sat in the blackness around him, breathing slowly and picturing the storm's destruction in his head. He was so close to the beach so it always worried him that he could be washed away by a wave. But Riku had decided that if the ocean waves were to roll in and take him, he'd go without a fuss, leaving the land and becoming the ocean.

He pictured behind his eyelids, trees snapping in half, the sand becoming liquefied and splashing up with the raindrops and hail, lightning ripping through the sky, thunder threatening to shake their very world out of its orbit. Riku inhaled deeply, somehow, despite the chaos outside, in a state of peace.

Outside, the boy raced along the shoreline, feeling the spray of the waves as they moved closer to him. He ran until his lungs were burning and his leg muscles felt stiff and heated. Pausing to breathe, he doubled over and put his hands on his knees, panting. His blue eyes flickered upwards to the silhouette of a house somehow solid while everything around it was moving. A relieved smile spread across the boy's face and he sighed. Thunder crashed, causing him to jump and he tore off, using his last energy reserves to reach the house. He ran with arms outstretched towards the window covered with wooden planks and fell against it, hitting it with his fist.

Riku jolted, a newer, sharper sound pulling him from his thoughts. He turned his head in the direction of his window but in the darkness he couldn't see it. Perhaps something had struck it and Riku began to worry then. He shifted in his hammock, waiting. There was another loud crack against the window. And another. Astounded, Riku realized there was someone there and slid off the bed, moving towards the window while he clawed at the darkness until his hand reached the wooden planks.

Curling his fingers around them, grunting with the strain as he tried to pull them back. The knocking persisted at the window and Riku found himself mouthing 'hang on, hang on' as he finally pulled one of the planks off. He stumbled backwards, falling into his hammock. The opening wasn't large enough for anyone to get through but a hand extended through and the muffled voice on the other side had suddenly become clearer. "Riku! Riku!"

Gasping, Riku pushed himself out of the hammock and back to the window, grasping the soaking gloved hand. He peered through the opening at Sora, standing outside in the wind and rain. Concern bubbled inside the older boy but he switched it for annoyance instead. "Sora, _what _are you doing out there?"

"I wanted to make sure you were alright!" Sora said, hoarse and breathless. He withdrew his hand as Riku struggled to take another plank off the window.

"I've lived through storms like this before!" Riku answered, ripping another plank off and this time retaining his footing. Sora managed to get his head and shoulders through the hole and struggled to climb in. With a sigh, Riku pulled him by his wrists and Sora thudded onto the floor.

Riku hurried to replace the planks and Sora got up, helping him. The storm was shut out once more but it sounded more violent than before. He heard Sora clump around his room and eventually trip over something. Riku felt around for him and grabbed a handful of the wet hair. "Are you okay?" he asked, sounding irritated with him.

Sora was lying on the floor, rubbing his nose. "It's dark in here, I can't see a thing."

"You're not supposed to walk around, idiot" Riku sighed. He withdrew his hand. "You're soaking wet."

"Well I was out in the rain..."

"I'll get you something to change into" Riku stepped over him and rummaged around the room. He knew his room even in the dark but when he opened his drawers, he couldn't be sure of what clothing he was getting out. He held up the clothes in his hands, as if he could see them, and was deciding if they were alright. Then he tossed them onto Sora, who was just moving into a sitting position on the floor. They fell over his head.

"What if I put them on backwards or something?" Sora asked, removing them from his head. He too held them up and shook them a little. He could only judge where Riku was by the sound of his voice. "Just change, right here?"

Riku rolled his eyes. "I can't see you at all."

"Oh..." Sora smiled and laughed nervously. "Right." He stood up, peeling his cold, wet clothes off and kicking them to the floor. He took hold of the dry pair and stumbled as he put them on as best he could. Riku had meanwhile resumed sitting in his bed, eyes turned to the window, ears attentively listening to the sounds. Eventually the hammock moved as Sora got onto it.

Both boys were quiet for a while. Finally it was Sora who spoke up. "I was just worried is all... I kept picturing your house getting blown away."

"I appreciate it. But now you're a little worse for the wear."

Sora nodded, fidgeting. Riku had always lived in that house. He had no parents; Kairi and Sora were as close to a family as he'd ever had. After more than a year's absence from the islands, both had found it difficult to adjust to being there again. Sora had often found himself wondering if he'd one day be called again to wield the keyblade and fight against the darkness in the world. He knew it would be easier with Riku on his side for once. But maybe those days were truly over. It was a thought both relieving and terrifying.

Sora recalled seeing Riku again and even with the memories of it, he could feel a warmth inside himself. That Riku was alive and well, Sora collapsed before him, unable to contain his emotions. Sora found himself caught up in the memory and uttered a few words.

Riku blinked. "Hm? What?"

"I wanted to find you..." Sora said again, brokenly.

Riku exhaled slowly. "I'm here now, aren't I?" he pointed out, his voice soft to soothe the distressed boy. "Come on, Sora. We're here now. It's alright."

"It's not alright..." Sora sighed. "I'm so sorry, Riku." His shoulders trembled. "So sorry..."

Riku didn't want Sora to cry again. But he wasn't sure what would calm the boy down. He didn't understand why it still got to him, why it still bothered Sora. They were together now, wasn't that enough? Riku admitted that he and Sora hadn't interacted much since their return. Riku assumed Kairi was the one Sora would be giving most of his attention to now. The two were at as much as a distance as ever, he knew.

He wasn't able to comfort Sora just as Sora wasn't able to save him. The two sat in silence for a long time, reflecting.

Finally Riku tried again. "I didn't want to face you... I was too ashamed, after all I'd done. After I'd allowed the darkness to swallow me... I was just a nuisance."

"I wish I could've known you were okay, is all..." Sora mumbled. He laughed uneasily. "I didn't mean to blubber like a baby... heheh... and now I'm doing it again..." He pressed a palm to his eye. "Stupid..."

"God, you're weird."

"Heh, I know it."

"And you don't have to worry about me like a fretful mother."

Sora glared a bit. "I'm _not _worrying like a fretful mother!" he said, defensively.

Riku laughed. "You are!" He could see Sora's pouting face even though it was pitch black.

"Well... I have a right to!"

"Thanks, mom"

"Argh!" Riku found himself flung back and fell onto the floor with a thud, Sora sitting on top of him. "You take that back!" Sora said in mock warning.

A grin spread across Riku's lips. "I take it back. You're more like a worrying, nagging WIFE!"

"Wife?!" Sora cried in surprise. He butt his head into Riku's chest. "That's a lie!"

"Calm down" Riku said, laughing again. But his laughter dwindled and died off when Sora relaxed against him, lying on top of him, his head still against his chest.

"...I'm glad you're back, Riku..." he said, gently.

"I _did _think about you... a lot..." Riku said, shifting uncomfortably. He sat up and Sora sat up with him.

"Really?"

"Yeah. I wondered if you were doing alright... I thought about what I'd say to you when we met again..." He reached towards Sora, his fingers brushing against the side of the younger boy's face. He felt Sora reach up and hold Riku's hand to his cheek. He closed his eyes and tears slid down his face. Riku could feel them against his hand. "Sora..."

"Hm...?"

Riku swallowed. "I won't leave you again... I promise..."

Sora smiled. "You'd better not. I went through a lot to find you the first time... and the second time."

"Alright, alright. I get it." He stood, pulling Sora up as well. "We should get to sleep."

"Sleep?" Sora asked, confused. He'd almost forgotten what time it was.

"Yeah sleep. I'm kind of tired. And the storm seems to be dying down." So there was no more need to keep watch. The two ambled back into the hammock and after a brief struggle as they tried to figure out where they both were and how much room there was, they were lying side by side, facing each other. The storm outside had changed from howling winds and thunder to fairly normal rainfall.

"Hey Riku...?" Sora asked, sounding more subdued. "Remember we used to do this when we were kids? I'd come and sleep with you when there was a storm." He laughed a bit. "I was so scared of thunder."

"Mm. I remember that" Riku answered. "I started to leave the window open for you too." He chuckled. "And I'd wake up sometimes in the morning and you'd be there with me. You'd just sneak in during the night and I wouldn't even notice."

He grinned. "Yep! I was the master at being silent!"

"You kinda suck at it now..."

"Whatever."

Riku sighed. "Those were the days, huh? It's not the same anymore."

"You know..." Sora began, now sounding cautious with his words. He could feel Riku's eyes on him even if he couldn't see them and he shifted a bit, causing the bed to sway.

"What's wrong now?" Riku asked.

"Nothing's... _wrong_. But I was just thinking. You must be kinda lonely here."

"I guess... sometimes."

"And well... I've never been really close to my parents, you know. And it's weird living with them again after so long. It's awkward."

"_And_?"

Sora inhaled slowly. "Aaaand... I was thinking maybe I could live here with you. You know... Together."

Riku blushed. "Live here with me?" he asked, blinking. He'd never really lived with anyone his entire life. He didn't know what to say. Sora took it as a rejection and covered his face with his hands.

"Ah! Forget I said that! That was stupid! Living together... ha! You'd probably go insane anyways. I'm so messy and I'm a slob and I don't-"

"Why do you want to live with me?"

"Well... it seemed... like fun, you know?"

Riku knew something was up and he wasn't going to let Sora tiptoe around it. "Sora, what's bugging you? You can tell me. Are you having problems with Kairi?"

The silence that answered seemed to confirm this. Riku pressed on.

"You don't like her?"

"I do!" Sora cried. But then his voice faltered. "I... well... I do like her. Of course I do. She's my friend. I care about her. But... when she wanted to get close, when she tried to kiss me... I thought 'This isn't right. This isn't what I want' and so..."

"You never loved Kairi?" Riku asked, trying to absorb this new information.

"...I guess not."

"Heh. I would've thought you two were made for each other."

"I just don't... like her in that way."

Riku couldn't understand why. Kairi had grown into an attractive young woman and she was so close to Sora, it seemed they were a perfect match. After all he'd been through to save her, Riku had always thought it was driven by love. He relaxed again, unsure of what to think. Of course, it opened the door to other questions.

"I see..."

"Is that weird?"

"No."

"I always thought I liked her, Riku" Sora continued, sounding frustrated. "But when I actually _had _her, I realized it wasn't what I wanted."

"Was she mad at you for it?"

"I think she was upset..." Sora mumbled.

"I guess there's not a lot you can do about it."

Sora lay facing the ceiling and tucked his hands behind his head. "She probably hates me..."

"She'll be alright, you know."

"Mm."

Sora closed his eyes for a while and Riku didn't speak again. When he finally rolled over, he prodded at Riku's side and realized he'd fallen asleep. Sora couldn't see the older boy, which he found somewhat regrettable. But he could hear Riku's calm breathing as he slept. The rain continued to patter the roof. Sora listened. He shifted close to Riku, as he always had in the nights during a storm. The sound of thunder could occasionally be heard, but it was soft and distant. The storm was moving back out to the sea.

He smiled to himself. As a small child, he'd always wondered how Riku could be at home alone in a storm and not feel afraid. He'd climbed into his hammock, much bigger at the time, often. He would whimper and press into Riku's side and the silver-haired boy would laugh and stroke Sora's hair.

_"Thunder won't hurt you, Sora. It's just a sound."_

_"It's so loud!" Sora answered, cupping his hands over his ears as another deafening boom sounded right above them. _

_"Don't worry. My house is a fortress. It'll keep us safe. And I'll keep you safe too." _

Sora wasn't afraid of thunder anymore. But he still took comfort in being near Riku. He couldn't really express his feelings to the older boy in a way that made sense. He wasn't sure about it all, himself. He'd always felt the need to impress Riku and prove he wasn't worthless. Maybe he was the nuisance to Riku. Riku had left him and had no desire to be found.

Sora squeezed his eyes shut. Riku had no idea how much of a mess Sora was without him, really. Riku was there before Kairi. Since Sora could barely walk, Riku was his friend. Sora had always assumed they'd be together. Just living forever on the island, friends and rivals. That was how it should be.

Fingers reached out, touching Riku's long, silver locks. Sora idly twirled some around in his fingers knowing that if Riku were to wake up and catch him, there'd be trouble. Riku wasn't big on affection. It was a little like there were walls around him and Sora couldn't quite get through. Riku was almost seventeen now. He'd grown handsome and the girls on the island and at school had begun to take notice and were tripping over each other for a bit of his attention. Sora would watch with amusement. Riku liked the attention but he didn't seem to care about any of them.

"Riku..." Sora sighed, smiling. "You don't mind if I do this, do you? You don't have to pretend around me, you know that..." He gently trailed his fingers over the contours of Riku's face. Even at his age, there wasn't an ounce of facial hair and Sora found that amusing but it was the same situation for him. Sora shifted closer. He pressed himself against Riku so that he could feel the boy's pulse against his skin. He put his mouth to the shell of the older boy's ear and spoke so softly that he himself couldn't hear.

"Riku... I don't know how this is going to sound... but I really like you... in the way that I want to kiss you, Riku. I don't know why."

Riku mumbled in his sleep, draping an arm across Sora as he changed position slightly. Sora slid his arms about the other boy's waist, laying his head on his chest just under his neck. Riku hadn't said Sora could live with him but he began to fantasize about it. He pretended Riku wasn't sensible enough to get Sora his own bed, and they would sleep next to each other every night. It caused Sora's stomach to tingle. Riku wouldn't hug him or sit near him in their waking hours. He was too standoffish for that sort of thing. But Sora wished he would.

Finally, Sora drifted off to sleep.

Now morning, the bewildered inhabitants of the island wandered outside to see the destruction the storm had caused. Trees had been snapped in half and several houses had been damaged. But the sky was clear, with not a cloud in sight. It had been more like a hurricane. Clearing up the debris became the job of the inhabitants.

Slants of sunlight got through the boarded up window in Riku's bedroom and the room was considerably lighter when Riku woke up. He could hear people outside as they talked amongst each other and tried to repair the damages. He figured he ought to get out and help but as he shifted, he felt a weight hanging off of him that produced a groan. Riku could see a mop of messy brown hair and he could feel Sora's breathing against his neck. It reminded him a bit of when they were children. Riku would often wake up with Sora clinging to him after falling into a fitful sleep.

It didn't feel awkward with Sora asleep. He didn't really mind and he shifted back to his original position, allowing Sora to sleep some more if he needed. One hand idly stroked the younger boy's hair, just as he'd done in the past to comfort him.

"So-ra... you weirdo..."

Sora mumbled something, his lips ticking Riku's neck. Riku stiffened as Sora gradually began to stir from his slumber. His eyes opened but he remained how he was. Riku's hand rested on his head but he didn't move it.

"Sleep alright? You weren't scared, were you?" Riku asked, a smile playing on his lips.

"Mmm... no."

"Your breath is tickling me..."

"Lemme sleep some more..." Sora moaned, burying his face into Riku's neck once again. "It's too early."

"We should help clean up outside" Riku replied. He moved to get up but the smaller boy's weight pressing against him made it difficult. "C'mon, Sora."

"Nooo..."

"You're too old to be doing this sort of thing."

"Geez, give me a minute"

With a heavy sigh, Riku flopped down again. Sora eventually rolled off of him and rubbed his eyes, sleepily. "I was cold, is all" he said.

"If you'd woken me up I could've gotten you another blanket" Riku said, getting out of the bed and stretching. Sora watched him, eyes half closed.

"Sorry... next time, I guess."

"If you think there will be a next time... We haven't done that in a long time, you know."

Sora was all nostalgic. "Aw, but it wasn't horrible, was it? Didn't it remind you of the good old days?"

Riku was looking at himself in the mirror and fixing his hair. He could see Sora in the background, sitting up, sleepy and in disarray. He smirked, taking longer with the mirror then he needed to because he didn't want to directly watch Sora. Sora's shoulders weren't as broad as Riku's and one side of his shirt had slid down, exposing Sora's shoulder.

Finally finished, Riku turned around and faced Sora. "Stay here and sleep some more if you want. I'm going outside." He headed for the door but Sora called to him.

"R-Riku!"

"Yeah?"

"So can I? Live with you, I mean."

Riku lowered his head, frowning a bit. "Well uh..." He finally met Sora's eyes, and smiled a bit. "Yeah I guess..."

Sora grinned widely but tried not to let his excitement show until after Riku had left. As soon as he had, he dove back into the bed, hugging the pillow and grinning stupidly.

Riku headed outside into the sunlight after tearing the boards from his front door. The air was warm and smelt of rain and the beach was a mess, littered with branches and debris. Riku joined with the others to help clear off the beach as best they could. As he was lifting a tree branch, through the leaves, he could see Kairi on the other side, lifting as well. The two of them moved the branch across the sand and into the grouping of trees where they tossed it away.

"Hi, Kairi" Riku said, smiling.

"Hi" she replied, smiling back. Her smile melted into a look of concern and she walked down the beach, sitting by the water. Riku followed her, standing next to her and looking on at the calm stretch of ocean.

"Riku..." Kairi began, pausing as she struggled with her words. "About Sora... Tell him I'm sorry. For everything."

Riku shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant. "Don't worry about him, Kairi. Sora will always care about you, you know. If you give him some time, maybe he'll-"

"He told me that he had feelings for someone else..." Kairi said, absently plucking a seashell off the sand and turning it over in her hand.

Riku staggered backwards a little at the news. "O-oh..."

Kairi smiled a little sadly. "I want him to be happy, you know..."

Eventually, the debris was mostly cleared and Riku felt a sense of triumph over the elements. He was hungry by this point and strode around, plucking some coconuts from off the trees. Gathering them in his arms, he walked back to his house to find a clothing line strung out and Sora's damp clothes hanging from it. He walked inside to find Sora in his bedroom, taking the planks off the window.

Riku stood in the doorway for a moment and Sora turned around, after the window was cleared up and light filled the room. "Hi, Riku" he said, smiling widely. "Roomie!"

"You really should talk to your parents about this before you go living with me" Riku said, sitting himself down on the floor and setting the coconuts down. Sora joined him on the floor, breaking the coconut with his head.

"You don't mind though, do you? I just thought, since you're alone and all... maybe you'd want some company."

Riku smiled. "I don't mind, Sora. Really." He watched the other boy hold the coconut to his lips and tilt his head back to drink. "By the way... Kairi says she's sorry."

Sora set the coconut down, wiping his moistened lips with the back of his hand. "I'm sorry too..."

Riku swallowed. "Kairi's... a good girl."

"Yeah..."

Riku sipped some of the milk from the coconut and wrinkled his nose a bit at the somewhat bitter taste of it. "She told me you had your eye on someone else."

Sora sputtered a bit, his face reddening. "Y-yeah. Um... I mostly said that to get her off my back, you know."

"Mmhm..."

_The evening air was warm. Sora sat himself on the leaning tree and gazed out at the ocean. He'd missed the sunset. The entire island was filled with the sound of crickets and fireflies hovered lazily around in the night air. Sora watched one drift past his face and he caught it in his hands, grinning. "Gotcha!"_

_"Sora!"_

_The boy turned around to see Kairi struggling to climb onto his perch. He helped her up and she blushed and mumbled a 'thanks'. Sora smiled at her and opened his hands, letting the firefly back into the air. It drifted upwards and the two pairs of eyes followed it for some ways until it was impossible to tell if it had joined the stars or not. Sora swung his feet, awkwardly. It had only been a few days since their return to the island. Goofy, Donald and King Mickey and returned to their world with the promise of visiting. _

_The thought of his friends caused Sora to sigh. He'd miss them, certainly. Kairi looked at him in concern. "Sora..." She placed her hand over his and he didn't pull away. _

_"I'm gonna miss them..." Sora said. _

_"They'll come and see us, you know" Kairi said, trying to bring a smile to the boy's face. _

_"Yeah... but it won't be the same" _

_Kairi looked down, biting her lip as she appeared thoughtful. "Umm... Sora?"_

_"Hm? Yeah?"_

_"I really like you... Sora..."_

_He smiled and laughed a bit. "I like you too, Kairi. I wouldn't have tried to find you if I didn't like you." _

_Kairi smiled, nervously. "But I like you... um... I like you as more than a friend." _

_Sora's heart began to thud in his chest. Isn't this what he'd been waiting for? All those times when Kairi was on his mind. He swung his legs faster. "I know..." _

_Kairi leaned in towards him and Sora towards her, the two of them less than an inch away from having their lips contact. But at the last second, it was Sora who pulled away. Kairi opened her eyes, a quizzical look on her face. He looked apologetic and upset with himself. "Kairi... I'm sorry. I... I don't feel that way about you..." _

_Kairi's eyes widened and she looked crestfallen. "Oh." _

_"I- I thought I did! I must have seemed like I did. I really do care about you, Kairi" he grabbed for her hand, holding it and staring at her pleadingly. Kairi refused to meet his gaze, instead looking at his hand holding hers. He tugged it a bit. "But there's someone else... I... well... I'm not sure what I feel about them. I need to sort it all out, okay?" _

_Still she said nothing. _

_"R-Riku and I have been through a lot together. Lately I've been feeling... uh..." He blushed deeply and Kairi snatched her hand away from him. He stared at her face, seeing it contorted in sorrow. Tears lined her eyes, threatening to spill. _

_"Riku?" she asked, her voice small and trembling. Angrily she pushed her hands into Sora's chest, knocking him off the tree. "It's Riku?!" With a sob, she ran from him. Sora lay on the ground, rubbing his head. He reached towards her. _

_"Wait! Kairi!" He stood up, trying to follow her. She ran into her house and slammed the door, leaving Sora outside. He knocked on the door desperately. "Kairi! Kairi! Please!" _

_When no one answered, he slid to his knees, one hand still on the door. He started to cry. "Kairi... I do care, I do..." _

Sora had become lost in his thoughts and had pulled his knees up to his chest while he looked on at the floor. Riku frowned and stood up, grabbing hold of Sora's arm. Sora was pulled from his thoughts and he jerked his head up to stare at Riku in bewilderment. "Come on. Let's go outside."

Sora just nodded and went along with him. Riku swung open the front door and they stepped out into the warm sunlight. Even with most of the branches cleared away, Sora could see the damage that the storm had caused and stared, his mouth hanging open. "That was one heck of a storm, I guess."

Riku strode out onto the beach before glaring at Sora. Sora stood behind him with a confused look on his face. "What?"

"You didn't help us..." Riku said, a sinister grin spreading across his face. He took a step towards Sora and Sora backed up slowly.

"W-well I..."

"I'll have to get you for that."

"W-what?"

Riku suddenly lunged at Sora, kicking up sand like a cloud of dust as he did. Sora didn't get a chance to flee. Riku grabbed him and lifted the struggling boy into the air, not quite over his head but close enough. "You're going to get it now, Sora!" Riku called, walking towards the water.

"Lemme go!" Sora cried, struggling to get away. "What are you doing?!" Before he knew it, Riku flung him into the air and he flew for all of three seconds before he landed face first into the water with a huge splash. Riku stood on the shore, laughing as Sora surfaced, gasping.

"That'll teach you"

Sora stood up, glaring at Riku. "Jerk!" He waded out of the water, soaking wet and ran at Riku, growling. Riku jumped away from him and they chased each other over the beach. Sora eventually tripped and sprawled into the sand. Riku down to a stop, a distance away.

"You suck!"

Sora raised his head, covered in sand and spit some from his mouth. "Shut up!"

Riku eventually went over to him and knelt down. "Only you could trip on a grain of sand."

"I didn't trip on a grain of sand!" Sora growled, sitting up and dusting himself off. He looked behind him and pulled out the offending object before his annoyance faded away. It was a papou fruit. "Just a stupid fruit."

Riku sighed and lay back on the sand, splaying his limbs out and closing his eyes. Sora stared at him before doing the same, holding the fruit on his stomach. He turned his head to look at Riku and smiled at the peaceful look on the older boy's face. Sora slid his hand closest to Riku towards him and eventually linked their fingers together. Riku didn't seem to mind.

"It's a nice island..." Riku murmured. "I did miss it... sort of."

"You lie" Sora mumbled, staring at the cloudless sky through half lidded eyes. "You didn't miss anything."

"I missed _you_"

"Sure, sure."

"I mean it..." Riku rubbed his thumb over Sora's hand. Then he grumbled in irritation and sat up, letting go of him. Sora looked at him. Riku ran a hand through his silver hair and pursed his lips together. "I wished I could've been with you through everything." He hung his head, dejectedly.

"You're with me now" Sora answered, simply.

Riku smiled a bit. "You're my best friend. You have been... since before I can remember. And I've always been around you. And maybe not being around you made me a little crazy." He glanced at Sora. "Do you understand...?"

Sora sat up on his elbows, raising an eyebrow. "Not really"

"Well... I don't know. I'm having a hard time figuring it out. But when I'm around you... uh..." he shook his head, trying again. "When you're here... I... agh!"

"Feel good?" Sora finished for him.

"I guess so. Yeah. To put it bluntly."

Sora sat up fully. "You feel warm?" he asked, lowering his voice somewhat and moving in closer to Riku. "You feel like your heart won't stop pounding...?" He brushed a hand over Riku's chest. "Like there are butterflies in your stomach?"

"A-a little..."

Sora moved into Riku's lap and Riku didn't shove him away. They just looked at each other, brows furrowed, eyes searching for something within the other. "I feel like that too, Riku..." Sora whispered. He frowned. "What does it mean?"

"I- I don't know..." Riku said, helplessly, his shoulders slumping. They stared at one another for a long pause. Finally a look of determination flashed in Riku's green eyes. "Sora," he put his hands on the other boy's shoulders. "Kiss me."

Sora jerked back slightly, eyes widened in shock. "Wh-what?!"

"Kiss me."

"But... but... I..."

Riku leaned in towards Sora, eyes narrowed. "Kiss me." Now he sounded like he was ordering Sora to do it. Sora gulped and licked his lips nervously.

"A-alright." He leaned in slowly, closing his eyes and puckering his lips out, not really sure how else to do it. After an eternity of moving closer, he finally contacted Riku's mouth. A jolt ran up his spine and he pulled away, shyly. "That felt weird."

"Not bad though..." Riku murmured. He slung his arms around Sora's neck, yanking him in and kissing him harshly. Sora went slack against Riku, eyes closing and a dreamy sigh slipping from his mouth. Neither boy knew much about how to kiss and they parted again after a long pause. Sora sighed again, smiling.

"Not bad at all"

Riku smiled, brushing back Sora's bangs with one hand. "Sora, you're cute."

Sora fidgeted under Riku's gaze. "Kairi says that too..."

Riku's smile faded. "What now?"

Sora took hold of Riku's hands and held them to his chest. "Riku, I think I'm in love with you." Yes, it had come out impulsively, but Sora thought about it a little after saying those words and he realized them to be true. Sure, he loved Riku. He'd always loved Riku. He'd always admired Riku, looked up to him... The love had just changed. Sora smiled, his expression showing his nervousness. "Sorry. That was really stupid to say."

"No, no. It sounds about right. I love you too."

"That's a relief!" Sora flopped down onto his back in the sand again, sighing. Riku grinned and leaned over him, putting his hands on either side of Sora's head. Sora gazed up at him, blinking. Then Riku started tickling him and Sora laughed and struggled to get away.

--

The night descended on the island but the previous night's storm seemed a distant memory already. Children giggled and raced along the beach, catching fireflies in a jar. Women talked to one another in their doorways. Men reclined outside near their houses. Riku and Sora were busily moving Sora's possessions to Riku's house. The work had gone long into the evening until finally everything had been transferred. Riku stood in the centre of his bedroom. Suddenly it looked like half Sora's, their two tastes clashing in some unholy union. Sora stood as well, grinning at their work.

"It's nice. Finally bearable."

"I guess..." Riku's eyes strayed to the hammock. "Should I get you a bed too?"

Sora grinned, lopping past Riku, laughing. "Nah. I don't mind sleeping with you. We've done it since we were kids, you know."

Riku rolled his eyes, joining Sora in the hammock. "I hope you don't expect me to do anything so soon."

Sora fell back, his head in Riku's lap. "Ah... I'm good for now." He blushed a little at the suggestion. "No rush..."

Riku looked out the window as he boredly played with Sora's hair. A Japanese style lantern, courtesy of Sora, hung in the window, casting a warm, red glow into the night. Moths danced around it, attracted by the light it brought. The window was open to let the night air in, as it usually was. Riku could hear the waves lapping in and out of the shore. He felt soothed by it. Sora, with his eyes closed, could've been asleep for all Riku knew.

The evening promised to be a calm, quiet one. A long while passed and Riku figured Sora had fallen asleep. Rather then move him, Riku decided he'd let him be. He couldn't resist the sleeping face of Sora.

He looked down at the boy, continuing to touch his hair. "You're that piece I thought I lost..." Riku whispered. "And you'll always be safe here... with me..." His words were as quiet as the ocean waves, as the evening breeze, but the corners of Sora's mouth twitched in a smile.

"I know."


End file.
